Between The Raindrops
by Batsy Rocks
Summary: Superman wants nothing to do with Superboy. Batman is Superman's best friend -at least according to Superman- and one of Superboy's mentors on the team. Batman seems like the best candidate to help solve the issue. Except he didn't expect certain... things to happen in the process.
1. Hurt

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Young Justice or any of its characters. Really, I don't.

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**Chapter 1: Hurt****.**

Superboy stood there, hands curled into fists as he watched Superman fly away. Away from _him_.

"He doesn't mean to hurt you."

A deep familiar voice called behind him a moment later, making Superboy tear his gaze away from the blue sky. There was no sight of Superman now.

"Superman." Batman added at the clone's silence. "He doesn't act that way to hurt you."

Superboy blinked at him. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to answer Batman, and if he did, he wasn't sure _how_. First of all, because he wasn't sure if he believed him, but mostly because knowing_ that_ didn't make Superman's indifference hurt any less. He said nothing, waiting for Batman to say something else or just disappear as he always did.

"Superman spent his entire life knowing himself the last of his kind. He came to terms with the fact he would never meet someone like him a long time ago." Batman paused, watching Superboy's eyebrows furrow as the clone absorbed the information he was giving him. "And then you showed up. Not only a Kryptonian, but a clone. Someone that looks just like him. Someone that was made to replace him." He purposely left out the killing part. It wouldn't do any good to bring that up right now.

Superboy shifted his gaze away from Batman.

"That doesn't mean Superman is right on acting like a _petty child_ instead of the _responsible_ adult he's supposed to be."

Despite of his instinctive anger at the insult against Superman, Superboy couldn't stop the warm feeling that expanded in his chest, flooding him with all sorts of strange emotions he didn't know the name of. Hearing someone as important as Batman showing his disagreement with the way Superman was ignoring him was... It was _overwhelming_.

"What do _I_ do?" Superboy whispered without meeting Batman's eyes. Who better to tell him what to do to make Superman like him than the man's best friend?

"Nothing." Batman's unintentionally harsh tone made Superboy flinch away. In a softer tone he added, "There's nothing you can do to rush Superman into making a decision. At least not the one you want. The only thing you can do is be patient."

Superboy sighed deeply, doing his best not to get angry at Batman. That didn't help him. _At all_. That was exactly what everyone tells him and what he had been doing since the moment he had come here. Be patient. Wait for Superman to even _acknowledge_ his presence. To look him in the eye for more than two seconds.

He could see that was not the answer Superboy had been hoping for. Could see the momentary glimpse of vulnerability in his face melt away, giving way to his usual hard and angry expression.

In a rare moment of hesitation, Batman stayed where he was. The easiest thing to do would be let things like that. Turn around and let Superboy to his own thoughts. It's what he _should_ do.

"I don't know what Superman's decision would be," Batman started, drawing the clone's attention back to him. "But what I _do_ know is that _you're_ part of this team now, and that as long as protect the innocent and fight crime remains as your priorities, you'll have a place here."

Batman didn't give Superboy a chance to reply, turning around to walk away as soon as he finished speaking.

He had a place where he belonged. Batman had said that. Gaze softening, Superboy followed Batman's retreating back until the man was almost out of sight, flickering his gaze back to the skyline where Superman had disappeared just moments ago, just for a second, before following Batman.

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**a/n:** Long notes are long, but well...

Am I the only one craving Batman/Superboy mentor-ish friendly interaction? Because seriously, I totally am. I'm going to be honest with you guys. I have a very basic canon knowledge (I have only seen scraps of episodes, and yeah, watching them all is on my to-do list. Which is _way_ too long) but enough to know of the Superman/Superboy issue and Batman's intervention too. So here I am, getting plot bunnies _and _writing them.

Basically, I love Batman. And I love an universe where he interacts with kids and -without really being sure at this point for the reason mentioned above- is good with them. But especially Superboy. For some reason.

I have a few other ideas in my head, but I'm unsure about posting them just yet. I would very much appreciate any feedback; both on if you would like to read more and the characterization and tone of the fic. Or even Superboy-Batman prompts of thing you'd like to see. All gen, of course.

Lastly, I'm not English native speaker and this is unbetaed, so feel very much free to point out any mistakes/misspellings you find. I would appreciate.


	2. Super Hearing

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Young Justice or any of its characters. Really, I don't.

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**Chapter 2: Super Hearing.**

Bruce stood in the doorway, brown eyes narrowed and cowl tilted ever so slightly to the side as he took in the sight before him.

Superboy was sitting on the couch in the entertainment room, elbows resting on his knees and head cradled between his hands. The TV was turned on, but the clone didn't seem to be paying attention to it. Just as he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings, since he hadn't noticed Batman's presence.

"Superboy." Bruce made his usual growl softer as to not straddle him. He needn't have bothered. The sudden noise still made Superboy jump, turning to the side to look at him, eyes wary. "What are you doing here?"

The clone fidgeted in his seat, fighting the urge to get up and stand straight to face Batman. He was allowed _anywhere_ on the mountain. Red Tornado and Black Canary had told him so, so he shouldn't be on problems. He reached for the remote, turning the TV off. "I- uh, I couldn't sleep."

Bruce narrowed his eyes behind the white lenses of his cowl. He waited, his gaze never leaving the clone, making it clear he was expecting a better answer than that.

Superboy lowered his eyes, brow furrowed deeply as he glared at the floor. He should have stayed in his room, just like always. But with M'gann away from Mount Justice for the night, he thought he could stay here without being bothered. He hadn't expected Batman to stay here so late and he had- _other_ _things_ on his mind other than check if the place was really empty. Aside from Red Tornado.

"It's my super hearing." Superboy admitted grudgingly after long time, knowing Batman wasn't going to leave. "It's- I can't control it fully sometimes."

Bruce's eyes narrowed further as he pressed his lips into a thin line, barely stopping himself from striding toward the clone and demand to know why he had withheld that information from them.

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" He growled at last, taking slow, measured steps toward him.

"It's not- I'm not putting _anyone_ at risk! I'm not! It's never happened while we are fighting or training." Superboy looked at Batman pleadingly, knowing the man could pull him out of the team without hesitation. He added in a lower tone, "It only happens when I go to sleep. I can control it as long as I'm awake. _I_ can do it!"

It made sense, Bruce thought as he watched him. While he was awake, even subconsciously, there was a part of his brain that kept control of his hearing; that filtered the sounds. But when he fell into a deep sleep, even that part of his brain relaxed, tampering with the mechanism. It was... _fascinating_. But also a problem.

"How long has this been happening?" Bruce asked after a moment of silence, looking at him straight in the eye.

Superboy considered lying for a moment before discarding it. He was _The_ Batman. He would know if Superboy was lying. "Almost since I came here. But it doesn't happen every day," he added as an afterthought.

Bruce's eyebrows furrowed behind the cowl as he looked at Superboy. _This_ was exactly why a reliable, thoughtful mentor was important. _Necessary._ Even if Superboy hadn't spoken about this, the clone's mentor would have noticed something was wrong. If the clone even had a real mentor. He knew he would have noticed before if it had been Dick. He scowled quietly. Stupid hard-headed Kryptonian.

He racked his brain, trying to remember if Clark had ever mentioned something similar to this but came up with nothing. He would need to call him as soon as he got to the cave. Ask -more like order- him to come over if he wasn't too busy. And if Clark didn't have an answer perhaps they could install low-intensity red lamps on Superboy's room. That should help control his hearing while he slept.

"It's not a big deal." Superboy blurted out to fill the silence, shifting uncomfortably under Batman's deep gaze. "I don't need much sleep anyway."

"_It is_ a big deal. And we'll find a way to fix it." Bruce watched a look of relief cross the clone's face at his words, yet there was a soft glimpse of sorrow in his blue eyes. It wasn't hard to know _who_ had caused that reaction.

"Follow me." Bruce instructed, turning to leave the room without waiting to see if Superboy would follow him. He knew he would.

Superboy followed the dark figure in bewilderment; dread filled him with every step he took. Batman said he would help him, right? So he wouldn't pull him out of the team or dispose of him. Would he?

Bruce guided Superboy to the training room, turning around to watch the clone hovering hesitantly just by the entryway, without making any move to step inside.

"Exhausting yourself both mentally and physically might help you get a few more hours of sleep at least." Or so Bruce hoped. It was worth a try either way. And it could also help pull the clone's thoughts away from the hearing issue. _And_ the Superman one too. At least for the time being.

Superboy stepped slowly inside, looking warily at Batman as he came to stand before him.

Bruce gave a curt nod, motioning for Superboy to follow his lead. "Alright. Let's start with the warm-up routine."

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**a/n: **I was a bit unsure on whether or not I should have Bruce thinking of Superboy as 'the clone', but considering this wasn't too long after they found him I think it was in character. I would like to know what you all think about it!

I'm not an expert on Superman/Superboy powers so I pretty much went along with what made sense to me, so I hope it does to you too. I also don't have a specific reason for Bruce to be at Mount Justice so late, except because I needed him there. So for the purpose of this story he was fixing, upgrading or just doing something Bat-like in there.

And of course, thank you all for the wonderful reviews! And for favoriting and following this fic too. I'm so happy to get such a nice welcome here.


	3. Name

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Young Justice or any of its characters. Really, I don't.

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**Chapter 3: Name.**

"Superboy," Batman acknowledged the clone with a short nod as he made his way inside Mount Justice.

"It's Conner." Superboy blurted out, brow furrowed as he looked at a spot behind Batman's right shoulder. "My name is Conner," he murmured.

Bruce's eyes narrowed as he looked at Sup- _Conner_. Dick had been urging him to at least convince Clark to give Superboy a name for a while now, but with the Kryptonian refusing to say more than a word to his clone and the almost _palpable_ awkwardness that radiated from him whenever he was near Superboy, that had proven impossible. In fact, he probably should have become suspicious when Dick stopped asking. It was just like him to take matters into his own hands, Bruce thought wryly.

Superboy pressed his lips together, shifting on his feet. Why hadn't Robin told Batman? Robin had spent the whole day yesterday popping up out of nowhere everywhere he went, telling everyone his name was Conner and correcting them when they called him Superboy. Batman hadn't come to the mountain yesterday, but Robin was his partner, so he would have seen him at some point, wouldn't he?

"I- the other thought I should have a name." It wasn't a lie. Robin and Kid Flash had been the most insistent about it, but M'gann had brought it up too and the others had agreed. "They said Superboy is just a persona, and that I need a real name."

"I see." Batman replied, giving a curt nod. "And what do _you_ think about it?"

Superboy blinked, taken aback by the question_. No one_ had asked him that. And, he certainly hadn't been expecting Batman to be the first on doing so.

"I- I don't know." Brow furrowed, he took a moment to consider the question carefully. Batman wouldn't be asking if he didn't want an answer. A _good_ answer. "It's okay, I guess. I know names are important here on Earth, I just don't understand why it's important that I have one when I don't know Robin or Kid Flash's names."

Bruce regarded Superboy for a moment, pleasantly surprised by the clo- boy's answer.

"I know it's important that they keep their identities a secret. Robin explained it to me," Superboy added after a moment of silence. "I just don't understand _why_ they want to call me Conner instead of just Superboy."

"You should ask them." Batman said gruffly, but not unkindly. For one thing, his teammates would do a much better job of explaining and reassuring the boy than him, and it would be better for Superboy to hear it from them.

Superboy nodded slowly. He hadn't thought about just asking them that. Mainly because he hadn't even considered _his_ thoughts about being given a name in the first place. He had only shrugged and said it was okay when they asked him if he liked the name Conner.

Bruce took in Superboy's clenched fists at his sides, the hard crease between his eyebrows as he stood before him. The self-conscious way in which he was holding himself. Uncertain. Silence. Waiting. Risking quick, expectant looks at him. Looking for Batman's approval. _Or_ his disapproval. _Anything_. Bruce stayed silent a moment longer. Superboy wanted _Superman's _acknowledgment; his approval, but Batman's was the closest thing he could get. At least for now.

"Did you pick it out yourself?"

Superboy's head snapped up at the words, bright blue eyes blinking at Batman. A faint glimmer of hope flickering in his eyes.

'Conner. You look like a Conner. Nice to meet you Conner' That was what Robin had declared as soon as Superboy had pulled the door of his room open to find the smaller boy grinning at him, dark sunglasses hiding his eyes.

"I- no." Superboy shook his head. "Robin helped." He said quietly, hoping it was okay for him to tell Batman that. Robin hadn't said anything about not telling him, though. And Batman didn't look mad.

Bruce dipped his cowled head in acknowledgment, suppressing a smirk. He was sure Robin had done more than merely _help_ with that. He couldn't deny the apprehension he felt at the quick way Dick had not only accepted Superboy, but also the slow but easy way in which he was bonding with him. But then again, that was just Dick being his usual bright, cheerful likeable self. And with Superman ignoring Superboy, Dick had just made it his duty to make it up to the other boy on his own way.

The only noise Superboy caught as Batman walked away was the low hiss the cloth of his cape made with the movement, leaving him looking after the Dark Knight with a frown on his face.

"Conner," Batman called back without turning around, watching Superboy's head snap up out of the corner of his eye. "Don't forget to report to the gym for your training session in 42 minutes."

Superboy blinked at him. Watching Batman still there, he shook his head. "No. I mean, I wouldn't."

Batman left the room without a word, the corner of his lips lifted up just slightly. He would have to ask Dick if he had helped Superboy pick up a last name too. He was going to need one when he started working on the papers that would make Conner an official U.S. citizen. He was sure Dick would be _delighted_ to help him with that too.

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**a/n:** I know it's M'gann and J'onn who give Superboy his name in cannon, but the idea of Robin doing it was too cute and fitting to pass up. I think Robin taking a special friendly/brotherly interest in Superboy could at least in part explain Batman's willingness to engagen in Superboy's life too. At least in my head.**  
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Also, I'm very sorry about the long wait! But I actually have another account where I write for another fandom and I've been busy writing and posting over there, so yeah :P

Unless a more demanding plot bunny comes up, the next chapter would have Superman making an appearance, so I'm sure you can imagine how that will go...


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